Social Security - Part trois (or so)

I am laying in bed this morning trying to decide whether to get up or not and what to do about the heat. when the phone rings.

It is my new (third) Social Security Analyst. She had good news (maybe) and bad news. The good news was that a determination had been made in my case. I could hardly believe my ears! The bad news was that my case has now been sent (from Fresno) to San Francisco because it was picked up for review by the Quality Review Board.

She explained to me that the cases for the QRB are randomly chosen and that I just had the bad luck to have mine chosen. She said that it usually takes the QRB 1 month to decide whether they agree with the Analysts determination or not. If they do not agree, it goes back to the Analyst to get more information and present the determination again. If they do agree, the Analyst never hears anything more and the results go right back to the applicant. She wasn't sure if that came in a letter or in the form of a phone call.

She couldn't tell me what her determination was because there is a chance the QRB may not approve it. She told me that she made the determination based on my available information and that the Doctor's there at SS agreed with and approved her decision. It could be positive or negative. I couldn't get any clue from her. She did say that the Quality Board in her office sent a letter to the SF QRB stating that my case was a Dire Needs case and that a decision was needed by July 31 but didn't know if that would help or not.

I asked her if there was a number I could call in SF and she said she didn't have one she could call either. I said that I have had such bad luck on this case and she agreed. I explained that I had called COBRA to see if I could get an extension until I got the SS letter and they were of no help and said no.

She told me that if the answer was no from their office, I would receive a letter but if it was an approval, she wasn't sure if I would receive just a phone call and start getting checks or if I would get a letter. She referred me back to the office in San Jose to see if they had the answer to that question.

Overall, she was helpful and sympathetic. Lets just hope that everything goes through in time for me to renew my COBRA health insurance and continue with my treatments.